Really good vehicles, really cheap!

[charbaby]

Would anyone like to comment on buying a used/perowned vehicle really inexpensively?

You know that you can't buy a used Honda cheaply. Yeah, they're good/great cars but...they're expensive! In my area, they're too expensive to buy used so you might as well buy it new, get your best deal and new car financing rather than buying it used and getting used car financing.

A friend of mine son just bought a nice 07 Lincoln mkZ for about 14 grand. Nice/Sweet ride!
Or those nice Buicks that are a good vehicle but aren't quite in big demand on the used car market so, they're going cheap.

Good used cars that don't really have a good resale value but are a great value to us and actually better vehicles than other high demand used cars costing thousands more.

For example:
A same year/mileage Buick LeSabre and Honda Civic
Buick $2000. Honda $4000. What car would you buy?
Or a used Accord or a used Lincoln for the same price?

I've had great succuss with my Honda's in the past and I'm not really a fan of Buick/Lincoln til now with their new designs. I'm wondering if Buick/Lincoln will remain good cars with low resale values that will be great used car purchaces in the future.

 

[caravanmike]

in 2007 i bought a 4.3L silverado (c-1500) with blown head gaskets (do to lower radiator hose rupture)for $500.
replaced gaskets and shaved the heads. i sold it to my brother for what i had in it. he has put 70,000 miles on it with no other expenses other than a cheap reman alt and a water pump!

for around 1000 dollars he got a good running truck and 70,000 miles (and still running!!!!)

 

[charbaby]

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays to all and more stories please! Im waiting for all of the lazy bones/guests in the house to wake up so we can all open presents and have a good breakfast. I've already killed a pot of coffee.

 

[cryption]

I just picked up a 91 4runner 4x4 for 2 grand. You can find good deals out there. MinE still has working ac, heat, and cruise control.

 

[mrsilv04]

Check sites like Craigslist, and local "trader" papers like American Classifieds or the Thrifty Nickel.

Sometimes, people will buy a new car, and then a short time later decide to sell the old car, and list the old car on Craigslist for less than what the dealer offered in trade, just to get rid of it.

In 2007, I bought my niece a 2000 Grand Am SE2 with 78,000 miles for $3500 out of American Classifieds.

 

[J_Sap]

Char Baby, the reason the Honda sells for double the price of a similar Buick in your area is because people put believe in your area are willing to spend twice as much. Is it really worth double the cost? That is up for debate and is a personal choice, I think it is but that comes from my personal experience working on GM and Honda cars. I think at the end of the day it much more important to look at a car individually and see how well it has been maintained. Salt kills the all the cars in your area of the country, if you could find a car that wasn't subjected to the salt belt and rusted away then I would think that would be a good choice.

 

[rshaw125]

Most of the good ones were crushed after the ridiculous 'cash for clunkers' nonsense.

 

[Turk]

Oh, a Saturm SL1 or SL2 for sure..........

Cheap + reliable!!

 

[caravanmike]

i seek out the cars with low resale value and high production #'s! most of the time the low resale value is do to the market being flooded with them. but that also means parts are in great supply.
take for example 02-06 camrys. market around here is absolutely flooded with 4cylinders. i saw one the other day with 104,000 miles for $5000.

another one is 04 and up gran prix's with the 3.8L (4t60E). you can buy them all day long cheap and you have a drivetrain that can go 300,000 miles (with proper maintenance).

 

[Dave Hess]

You also have to factor in the gas mileage, insurance costs, how much are replacement tires, does the car have a T-belt / chain.....etc before you can really decide which car to buy.

I also notice Hondas on CL are much lower priced from a private seller verses the same year/model Honda at a used dealer.

 

[Spazdog]

I rented a Buick Park Avenue a few years ago. Is it a reliable car? Probably.
Would I buy one? Probably not.
I just don't personally like the way it drives. That's not a knock against the car. A lot of people like the way those cars drive. They would find my Mazda to be harsh and the steering too "twitchy" by comparison. But I like the way it responds to small inputs on the controls. The Buick didn't respond to [feces]. It just floated around, lots of body roll and lazy steering unbothered by anything.

I didn't intend to buy the 6. I wanted another Civic. But with all the unecessary dealer markup items, a new Civic EX was over $20,000. Used was $18,000. Same price as a (then) new Mazda3 with leather and Bose. They didn't have any equipped the way I wanted and I just looked at the 6. 1 year old and $15,000. Equipped the same as the Camries and Accords for $15,000 but with a V6 instead of a 4 cyl.

The Mazda6 grew on me. I checked and you couldn't get a Camry or Accord with a V6 for anywhere near the 6's price. So I went back and bought it. Even traded in my Integra GS-R instead of selling it. 200,000+ mile GS-R and they gave me almost $3,000. I decided at that point that Hondas were overpriced as they would surely ask for at least $5000 for it. (and they did)

I've put almost 75,000 miles on that 6 since then. The Duratec is the cleanest 95,000 mile engine I've ever had. It still drives real well and responsive and will run away from any 4 cyl Accord or Camry.

 

[mrsilv04]

Originally Posted By: Spazdog
I rented a Buick Park Avenue a few years ago. Is it a reliable car? Probably.
Would I buy one? Probably not.
I just don't personally like the way it drives. That's not a knock against the car. A lot of people like the way those cars drive. They would find my Mazda to be harsh and the steering too "twitchy" by comparison. But I like the way it responds to small inputs on the controls. The Buick didn't respond to [feces]. It just floated around, lots of body roll and lazy steering unbothered by anything.


Guess what... you're simply just not in the target market to buy a Park Avenue.

Now, consider my 72 year old Dad, retired business owner, wants luxury, but is too cheap to buy a DTS.... bullseye!

 

[daves87rs]

Saturn S series!

 

[bmwjohn]

I would wonder about Mercury Sable based on ford 500 based on volvo, chrysler crossfire for really deluxe wife car, a saaburu 92x, or the tahoe based saab.

 

[Spazdog]

Originally Posted By: mrsilv04


Guess what... you're simply just not in the target market to buy a Park Avenue.

Now, consider my 72 year old Dad, retired business owner, wants luxury, but is too cheap to buy a DTS.... bullseye!

That's why we got the mother-in-law a Hyundai XG. Leather and rides, accelerates, brakes, and shifts like you would expect from a big fwd Buick. Low cost. DOHC 6G72 timing belt will be a hassle but other than that it's comparable to a Buick. Transmission filter is certainly easier (spin on) And Hyundai was still taking a big hit on resale value when it left the showroom at that time so we got it cheap with low miles.

 

[2002 Maxima SE]

Bought my 2000 Taurus Wagon w/ 90K miles 2 years ago for $3300. Past 98, they're great vehicles with the DOHC and non-sequential transmission. Prior to that, the old transmission would grenade every 100k.

 

[The_Jeff]

Too many for me to count, or recount.

Trends: Private party sales. Owner doesn't know what motor, probably can't include pictures on craigslist, but can send them to your cellphone. They do include the color and other frivolous information to fill out the ad.

When it comes time to do business, the seller can't find the title. I've encountered "sellers remorse" the next day when the title is located, and my initially accepted offer was rejected. I even gave in once on what was still a good deal, pride be darned.

You really have to get a personality type, seriously impulsive, to get a great deal. IE Rent's due, there's going to be a snow parking ban for the street, etc. Helps if mommy and daddy bought the car for that 20 something. Especially if they got a new car to go to college. Once out of college they want out of that ride because they deserve it! Shop on the weekends with a wad of cash when the ATMs only allow $300 to $500 withdrawls; you can seal the deal today when the other losers have to wait till monday. You know, if they're coming back at all. As a buyer who showed up to look at the car you're ahead of 90% of craigslist... are those other phone calls phantoms too? Fear, uncertainty, doubt...

The actual cars are immaterial, but I get American most of the time just as a result of the market. Try for sedans but have had a few pickups: can always get out of them for what you get into them if you no longer need the bed for carrying stuff.

 

[charbaby]

To All...
I only used Honda's as an example of high resale value but there are other individual vehilces(Mazda Miata) that carry a high resale value too. I used Honda's also because they are a high volume vehicle(Accord/Civic) and the market is flooded with them but, their resale value is through the roof.

A bit off-topic...A friend of mine just bought a Honda Ridgeline. I don't know if this vehicle is really called a Pick Up Truck or something else. But, it's an '08 w/20,000miles for $29,000 grand? It only has the standard features and a couple of options(nothing special). I almost clappsed! I thought that she could have gotten a new one for not much more(32K-3K)! She really wanted an Avalanch but said they were too much money...Really!

 

[caravanmike]

i see loaded 08 full size half tons for 20-24 grand all day long. sounds like he paid to much for a quarter ton! mike

 

[HangerHarley]

Originally Posted By: Char Baby
To All...
I only used Honda's as an example of high resale value but there are other individual vehilces(Mazda Miata) that carry a high resale value too. I used Honda's also because they are a high volume vehicle(Accord/Civic) and the market is flooded with them but, their resale value is through the roof.

A bit off-topic...A friend of mine just bought a Honda Ridgeline. I don't know if this vehicle is really called a Pick Up Truck or something else. But, it's an '08 w/20,000miles for $29,000 grand? It only has the standard features and a couple of options(nothing special). I almost clappsed! I thought that she could have gotten a new one for not much more(32K-3K)! She really wanted an Avalanch but said they were too much money...Really!


You can get fully loaded customized Infiniti QX56s for like $25,000 to $30,000 (probably less) from 2004, 2005... because people "DO NOT LIKE" them.

If the Ridgeline was Fully Loaded AND in PRISTINE condition, he paid as much as can be expected. On the high side.. hopefully its worth every dollar and is loaded, is what im saying.